Elara continued, "The Code also says: Every man has a vote in the affairs of the ship. I call for a vote of confidence. Do you still sail with me? Or do we choose a new captain?"
As the Sea Witch unfurled her black flags, Elara touched the parchment nailed to the mast. The ink was smeared, the edges burned. But the words remained clear: pirates law
That night, Silas took his lashes without a sound. The next morning, he stood at the helm, charting a course toward a fat East Indiaman reported off the Cape. Elara continued, "The Code also says: Every man
Silas spat a tooth onto the deck. "You can't hang me, Elara. We're pirates. We ain't bound by no king's law." Or do we choose a new captain
I. Every sailor has a vote in the disposition of plunder and the election of officers. II. Desertion or concealment of treasure is punishable by death. III. Lights out at eight bells. Gaming and fighting forbidden after. IV. Mutiny earns the maroon. V. The captain shares the same rations, the same danger, and the same fall from grace.
Elara nodded to the quartermaster, old Peg, who stepped forward and unrolled a copy of the code. "Article Four," Peg croaked. "Any man who strikes his captain in anger shall receive forty lashes. Any man who conspires to seize the ship shall be marooned on a sand cay with one pistol, one ball, and a single ration of water."
Silas’s eyes widened.